Ships&#39;s table.



No. 726,752 PA'TENTED AP 28, 1903. w. J. PREATBR.

SHIPS TABLE.

APPLICATION Hum 020. 1a, 1902. no MODEL. 2 gums-slum 2.

w/f/v ssw: INVENTOH fimffrmzw I ATTORNEYS.

NITED STAT-Es;

PATIENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM J. PREATER, OEELIZABETH, NEW JERSEY.

Sl-IIPFS'TABLE.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 726,752, dated April28,1903. Application filed December 18,1902. Serial No.-l35,723. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM J. PREATER, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Elizabeth, in the county of Union andState of NewJersey, have invented new and useful Improvements in Ships Tables, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact descrip} I tion.

My invention relates to certain novel and useful improvements in shipfurniture, and has particular application to the construction of a tableadapted to be secured to the deck or to the walls ofa room of a vessel.

In carrying out the present invention I have particularly in view theconstruction of an article which shall embody the essential feature ofsimplicitythat is to say, be composed of relatively few parts and at thesame time be durable and not liable to be deranged or rendered unfit foruse by the motion ofthe vessel. p I

This improvement is also directed to a table the top of which shallalways be preserved or rest in a horizontal plane irrespective of thepitch or the motion of the vessel, and the means employed foraccomplishing this purpose is so arranged that it will in no wayinterfere with the use of said table. I have also in View the provisionof means whereby the table-top maybe extended or folded outward when itis desired to use the table for a large number of persons, as whenserving a meal, such extension or increase in the size of the tablebeing easily and quickly-accomplished through the medium oflever-counecting means arranged beneath the top of said table.

With these and other objects of a similar nature in view my inventionconsists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts, aswill be hereinafter described in this specification, delineated in theaccom pa- 1 nying drawings, and set forth in the appended claims. 1

Reference is to be had to the accompanyin g drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure lis a perspective view of a table embodying my improvements, thetop thereof being shown in its extended position. Fig.

the improvement.

standard.

' 2 is a bottom plan view of the same, showing the extensible frame forsupporting the folding leaves of the table, the contracted position ofsuch extensible frame being illustrated in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is aside elevation of Fig. 4 is a central longitudinal vertical sectionalview taken through the table, and Fig. 5 is a detail view of theswiveled connection or mounting of the table and a portion ofthe-bracket supporting the same. I

In the accompanying drawings, wherein I have shown an embodiment ofmyinvention, A designates any suitable portion of a vessel,

such as the deck or a side wall, to which is rigidly secured, by screwsor bolts 1, a base portion 2, having extending upwardly therefrom arelatively long curved arm or standard 3. Y

At the end of the aforesaid standard 3, as

cation or yoke portion 4, the ends of the arms forming the yoke beingwidened and flattened intobearing-plates 55. These bearing-plates areprovided with suitable apertures to permit the engagement therewith ofthe ends 1 of the set-screws 7, which screws also pass through lowerbearing-plates 8, the construction being such that the lower plates maybe adjusted by means of these set-screws relative to the plates formedon the yoke of the These upper and lower bearingplatesare adapted toform a support for the horizontallyextending shafts 9, formed onopposite sides of the collar-bracket 10, such bracket in the presentinstance being shown ofrectangular form, with an approximately circularorifice formed in the center thereof, an annular flange or collar 11surrounding said orifice on the under side of the bracket. For thepurpose of enabling the aforesaid shafts 9 to rest securely between thebeartermediate its ends, such collar being situated at or near thecenter of the orifice formed in the bracket, and a rod or post 14 issecured in such collar, the ends of the shaft 12 being supported in thebracket in a manner similar to the way in which the shafts 9 aresupportedthat is to say, a lower bearing-plate 15 is connected with theupper plate 10 through the medium of set-screws 16, said lowerbearing-plate having depressions formed at oppo site ends thereof topermit the seating of the ends of the shaft 12, and said screws permitthe adjustment of the lower plates relative to the upper portion of thebracket, whereby the shafts may be accommodated.

From the description thus farit will be observed that the rod 14 is sosupported that it has practically a universal movementthat is, it mayswing in any direction in the yoke 4 of the standard 8.

At the lower end of the rod 14 is mounted a relatively large weight 17,made of lead, iron, or other suitable heavy material, such weight havingapertures, ears, or lugs 18 formed thereon, said lugs being adapted tohave connected therewith through the means of screws 19 the lower endsof the brace-rods 20, such rods diverging as they extend upwardly andbeing secured at their uppermost ends to the under side of the table-topB, the central or main leaf ofsaid table-top being supported or mountedupon the top of the rod 14.

To the main leaf or portion of the table 13 are hinged the supplementalleaves 21 22, which leaves when not in use may be folded over on thetable-top, so that the square surface of the table is approximatelyequal to the main leaf; but when it is desired to open or use the leavesI make use of a supportingframe mounted beneath the table-top, whichframe I will now proceed to describe.

Mounted beneath the table-top are two parallel guideways 23 and 24,having grooves formed along their inner longitudinal edges, in whichgrooves are adapted to slide the frame or supporting sections 25 and 26.The central portions of the guideways 23 and 24: are cut away for somedistance, as shown at 27, which permits of the movement or swinging of alever 28 upon its axis, such lever being held centrally on the upper endof the rod 14, which extends through an aperture formed therein. Asegmental strip 29 is connected at one end, as at 30, with the portionof the lever near the handle thereof,the other end of said segmentalstrip being fastened, as at 31, to the movable frame-section 25. Asecondsegmental strip 32 is similarly connected with the lower part ofthelever, as will be seen at 33 in Fig. 2,and with the slidingframe-section 26, as shown at 3%. By this construction it will be seenthat when the lever 28 is swung or shifted in an arc in the cut-awayportions or open grooves of the guideways 23 and 24 the supportingframesections 25 and 26 will be moved inward or outward. When the leveris in the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, the frame-sectionwill be drawn inward and the leaves may be folded upon the table, asshown in dotted linesin Fig. 4; butwhen it is desired to utilize all thetop surface of the table by opening the folding leaves the lever isshifted, as shown in full lines in Fig. 2, the frame-sections 25 and 26are thrown outward, and the supplemental hinged leaves 21 and 22 may bethrown outward and supported upon the extended frame-sections.

The employment and operation of my improved table will be readilyunderstood from the above description, so that it is unnecessary tomention the same here in detail. It will further be observed that thereare many advantages incident to my improvement which will immediatelysuggest themselves to those skilled in the art to which the inventionappert-ains. This table will be found especially adaptable to use onyachts, tugboats, or other small vessels which are susceptible to themotion of the waves and which pitch violently when encountering heavyseas.

The table may be easily placed in position and can be enlarged orreduced in size without removing or inserting any additional 01'separate parts, such an advantage being especially appreciated onshipboard.

While I have herein shown and described one particular embodiment of myinvention, it is of course to be understood that I do not limit myselfto the precise details of the construction shown herein, asmodifications and variations in some respects may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing any of theessential features which fall within the scope thereof.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent 1. An article of the class described, comprising amain standard havingayoke formed at one end thereof, a bracket movablysupported by said yoke, a weighted rod movably mounted in said bracket,and a table-top supported on said rod, substantially as set forth.

2. An article of the class described, comprising a main standard,bearing-plates carried at one end of said standard, a bracket movablysupported in said bearing-plates a shaft movably supported by saidbracket, a weighted rod connected with said shaft, and a table-topcarried by said rod, the construction and arrangement being such thatthe table-top will always assume a horizontal position unaffected by anymovement of the surface to which the standard of the article is secured,substantially as set forth.

3. An article of the class described, comprising a main standard, aweighted rod movably supported thereon ,a table-top supported on saidrod, supplemental leaves hinged to said table-top, whereby said leavesmaybe folded over upon the main portion of the top, extensiblesupporting-frames slidably mounted beneath the table for supporting thesupplemental leaves, and means pivoted on the weighted rod beneath thetable-top for moving said frames, substantially as set'forth.

4. An article of the class described, comprisinga main standard, a rodsupported from said standard, a table-top movably mounted on said rod insuch manner that said top will always retain a horizontal position,supplemental leaves hinged to said table, said leaves being adapted tobe folded over on the main portion of the top, extensible frames mountedbeneath the table-top, and meanspivoted on the aforesaid rod andconnected with the extensible frames for moving the latter into and outof their extended positions, substantially as set forth.

5. An article of the class described, comprisinga main standard having ayoke formed at one end thereof, a bracket supported by said yoke, aweighted rod mounted 'in said bracket, a table-top supported on saidrod, supplemental foldable leaves hinged to said top, grooved guidewayssecured to the under side of said top, a lever pivoted centrally on therod beneath the surface of said top, the walls of the aforesaid groovesof the guideways limiting the movement of the lever, and a rigidconnection between the lever and the frame, whereby the frame can bemoved outward to support the supplemental leaves When the latter are intheir open or extended position, substantially as set forth.

6. In an article of the class described, comprising a main standard,adjustable bearingplates at one end of said standard, a bracket movablysupported on the standard by means of shafts formed on the bracket andresting between said bearing-plates, a second shaft 7. An article of theclass described, comprising a main standard, a yoke formed at one endthereof, adjustable bearing-plates carried by said yoke, an adjustablebracket supported in said bearing-plates, a shaft carried by saidbracket, a weighted rod connected with said shaft, and a table-topcarried by the rod, substantially as set forth.

8. An article of the class described, comprising a main standard,adjustable bearingplates carried at one end thereof, an adjustablebracket movably supported in said bearing-plates, a rod swingablymounted on said bracket, a weight depending from said rod, a table-topmounted on said rod, and brace-rods connecting the table-top with saidweight, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM J. PREATER.

Witnesses:

ToM PREATER, R. B. CAVANAGH.

